atw: Re: Literature Review: Serif or Sans Serif Typefaces?
- From: Peter G Martin <peterm_5@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2010 10:04:28 +1000 (EST)
Reg:
Valid point... and an example of the kind of issue that arises in the
assessment of use of serifs etc and their effect on comprehension.
In a case like this, there's clearly an understanding and comprehension
problem. Work back from that (as you clearly did) and you find its causes lie
in font characteristics.
That procedure is clearly valid, and useful.
Less likely to be valid, and more likely to be a waste of time, is the analysis
of issues to do with font formats ("readability" or "legibility") followed by
generalised conclusions that they must affect comprehension, or that they
automatically support a preference of one font style over another.
For a start, the latter approach ignores the amazing ability of the human brain
to handle visual ambiguities in the everyday world.
More importantly, that approach also involves a logical fallacy: we just don't
know small font variations affect comprehension until we test the
comprehension!
You had a classic comprehension test... and worked back to its cause. That's
logical.
-Peter M
----- Original Message -----
From: "rh" <zut@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, 2 August, 2010 7:12:35 PM GMT +10:00 Canberra / Melbourne / Sydney
Subject: atw: Re: Literature Review: Serif or Sans Serif Typefaces?
Hi Peter,
Thanks for adding some refreshing clarity to this hoary old topic. I would like
to comment a point you made:
« There still seem to be be swathes of (particularly) US writers who have
latched onto "the beer and naked women" roles of particular fonts, and keep
missing the point. Of course, in extreme cases, it's obvious that if you have
extreme difficulty in reading something, you won't understand it very well. But
that's at the extremity, and deals with exceptions, not more general
experience. »
A very large proportion of the readers of the English language manuals I write
are not native English speakers. For them, it does not take an extreme case of
typographic un-clarity to disturb their understanding of a text. Already the
English words used can have various shades of meaning, and technical vocabulary
does not translate directly between languages.
A recent example in a manual I was updating had this phrase:
« They have a turned transformer »
The NESB (non English speaking background) technicians asked « What is a tumed
transformer ? », because the font used put the « r » too close to the « n » and
it looked like an « m ». In fact, it should have been « a tuned transformer ».
A technician is obviously familiar with that term, but an NESB technician will
have to wonder if « tumed » is one of the many foreign words he or she does not
know.
Put one or two more little anomalies like this on the page being read by an
NESB person on a steamy Friday afternoon after a generous lunch, and the
measure of comprehension will plummet. I certainly agree in general with what
you are saying, but what is « extreme » in some circumstances is quite
ordinary in others.
I admire your use of analogy in explaining the concepts, it's not easy to
strike the right balance between subjective humour and universal relevance. I
think « the beer and naked women » label should become an industry standard
term to differentiate between the visual experience of a typeface and its
effect on comprehension.
Best regards,
Reg HARDMAN
Rédacteur technique
Paris
>Let me put this another way...
....
>
><And a Hi! and cheerio to all those out there who've been here before...>
>
>-Peter M
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